Selene Ong
Fish balls from hell, phoenix rolls from Macau, smelly tofu and cheesy chicken. These were some of the exotic fare local and foreign foodies were introduced to at The Singapore Food Expo that ran from May 25 to 29 at the Singapore Expo Hall 5.
The food offerings were a promise by Mr Allan Tan, President of the Singapore Food Manufacturer’s Association (SFMA), who said that visitors for this year’s event, the 8th in the series, could look forward to many “newly commercialised fare”.
As repeat visitors know, the expo is nothing about world renowned chefs in white aprons preparing a gastronomical feast in a haute cuisine environment, but a glorified version of a Singaporean pasar malam [night market] where food and food-related items are hawked and consumed shamelessly.
Besides offering samples that were seized, sellers were standing on ladders yelling “Buy 1 get 1 free!”. Many key industry players made use of this platform to either remind Singaporeans of their brand or to introduce new product lines under their names.
Like the new Anything and Whatever beverages, a splendid idea by 2 ingenious Singaporeans; or the new Pomegranate Tea from Pokka. Even the top 3 local instant coffee mix brands –Owl, Super and Café Nova- were stepping up to attract more consumers to select their brand of coffee.
In addition to the traditional local delicacies like laksa [curry noodles with coconut milk], satay [charcoal-grilled skewered meat chunks usually eaten with peanut sauce], bak kwa [barbecued meat] and black pepper crab, visitors could also look forward to many less common nibble and drinks such as brown rice tea, rose flavoured red wine, cheese bak kwa and many more.
Black Pepper Crab
What would The Singapore Food Expo do without the ubiquitous Black Pepper crab? Like they say, if you haven’t tasted the Black Pepper Crab, you haven’t been to Singapore. While a little messy for a handy snack, that’s what we have wet wipes for, the smaller spanner crab (S$8, buy 1 get 1 free) was available for visitors.. Many were seen parking themselves in a corner in or outside the Exhibition Hall devouring the dish.
Although this version is nothing compared to the ones locals enjoy in the coffee shops, it at least gave those who have never tasted this delicacy before (where have you been hiding?!) a clear idea juicy flesh infused with the heartiest of flavours.
Phoenix Rolls
One of the highlights of this year’s event was the focus on Macau cuisine. Sweet and savoury pork floss and seaweed wrapped in a paper-thin sheet of crispy dough, this mini-snack left me wanting for more. This traditional Macau snack is nothing like our oily prawn rolls at Chinese New Year because it tastes totally fat free so ladies can enjoy second-rounds without feeling to have sinned!
But for beginners, here’s a huge tip: Make sure you prepare lots of napkins because the pastry is really the epitome of the word, crumbly.
Besides this unusual snack, some other Macau delicacies featured in the food expo were hot and spicy fish maw soup and dragon floss candy.
Hot and Spicy Fish
This has got to be one of the most brilliant culinary innovations ever made yet. Soft and bouncy fish balls stewed in a large pot of China’s famous ma la [hot and spicy] soup that will have you salivating just by looking at the potent bright red soup covered with a film of unquestionably spicy chili oil. The fish balls have been fried before being poured into the hot soup, giving a chewy on the outside, soft on the inside sensation. This dish is certainly not for the weak stomach.
If savouring over 100 varieties of delights in the hall wasn’t not enough, there were also many stalls selling canned, frozen or convenient food at rock bottom prices for visitors to enjoy back in the comforts of their own home.
Common brands like DoDo Seafood and Kings Ice-Cream were selling products both good for eating immediately as well as back home. Defu Foods, whose famous Halal otah [marinated fish wrapped in banana leaf for grilling] could be smelt a mile away, was selling their product frozen and ready-to-eat. I preferred the pleasure in binging while weaving through the crowd, stopping only to grab some more of the appealing Asian delights (more Phoenix Rolls!) to gorge myself later in the evening.
Tourists took the chance to purchase some cholesterol-free, new and improved formula honey, whole-meal bread or soy sauce home for their loved ones. Although among the sea of locals only 1 or 2 foreigners could be spotted, this convention was certainly targeted at the tourists as well.
Although this year’s food expo received a poorer response from exhibitors as compared to last year, the organizers are expecting a higher turnout of 600,000 visitors and a total revenue of no less than $6 million.
For more information, visit the official website at http://www.singaporefoodexpo.org.sg